Keanu Reeves returns for more heart-stopping action in the first John Wick: Chapter 4 footage shown at CinemaCon. John Wick: Chapter 4 is once again directed by Chad Stahelski, who has helmed all of the films in the series thus far (along with David Leitch for the first one). The new movie brings back Reeves, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, and Laurence Fishburne, while also adding new cast members Donnie Yen, Scott Adkins, Hiroyuki Sanada, Bill Skarsgard, Shamier Anderson, and Rina Sawayama.
Thus far, the John Wick franchise has taken place over the course of about 20 days from the first film to the third. The series kicked off when Wick, a former assassin, is pulled out of retirement when his dog is killed and his car is stolen by Russian mobsters. This sets off a chain of events that have led a trail of bodies and destruction all the way up to the end of John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, which left the series on a major cliffhanger. After defending the assassin hotel known as The Continental against an attack from The High Table (the assassin guild's ruling elite), Wick is betrayed by Winston (McShane), shot and left for dead. However, the severely injured Wick is brought to Fishburne's Bowery King, who agrees to team up with him to retaliate.
Now, the first footage from John Wick: Chapter 4 has been revealed during Lionsgate's presentation at CinemaCon. Reeves is back in top form as the resourceful and highly-lethal titular character, who is now on a mission of revenge after the vicious betrayal at the end of John Wick: Chapter 3. The footage shown was described as "colorful, bloody and brutal" with lots of "samurai action," including the first time Reeves uses nunchucks in the franchise (via Barry Hertz). That is in a sequence that shows him beating an adversary over the head over and over again. Both the Bowery King and Winston also appear in the trailer, with Fishburne saying at one point, "You are in the presence of the motherf*cking king!" (via Rohan Patel). Reactions to the footage say it ups the ante on the series, particularly in action and body count (via Scott Menzel).
The John Wick franchise has quickly become Lionsgate's flagship franchise since The Hunger Games ended (although more is on the way) and has even begun to spawn spinoffs, including a TV series focusing on the early days of The Continental and a feature film titled Ballerina, which will be led by Ana de Armas and directed by Len Wiseman. The Continental series stars Colin Woodell as a young Winston, while Mel Gibson will co-star as a mysterious character named Cormac. The show will be a three-night Lionsgate/Starz limited event series, which will serve as a prequel to the John Wick universe. Meanwhile, Reeves is taking a short break before jumping back into his Baba Yaga suit for John Wick: Chapter 5.
The only thing better than having a new John Wick movie on the horizon is him using new weapons, and seeing Reeves take out some adversaries with nunchucks is sure to bring down the house. Thus far, Reeves has used everything from guns and knives to cars, motorcycles, and horses to fight off his attackers, so working in some new (and classic) weaponry only makes the anticipation that much greater for the action-intense series. While the straight action genre has had to make way for the superhero genre in the last decade, it's nice to know that films like John Wick: Chapter 4 are still out there to keep its name in the game.
Source: Barry Hertz, Scott Menzel, Rohan Patel
